Charlie Crist on Energy & Oil

Republican

I'm not a scientists, but I can use my brain & talk to one

Charlie Crist knows how to work a storyline. The Democratic gubernatorial candidate, who as a Republican governor in 2007 said global warming was "one of the most important issues that we will face this is century," was handed an opportunity to highlight
a difference between himself and Gov. Rick Scott when Scott said, "I'm not a scientist," in response to a question about climate change. Friday, Crist met with one of the scientists who has offered to meet with Scott and discuss the issue.

"I'm not a scientist either but I can use my brain and I can talk to one," said Crist, arriving for a 25-minute presentation by Professor Jeff Chanton of the Florida State University Earth and Atmospheric Science Department.
A consequence of global warming is rising sea levels. Billions of dollars of Florida real estate and roads are at risk as the sea moves inland. [Prof. Chanton estimates 17 inches sea level rise].

Reduce climate change by doing things we should do anyway

It was virtually important, I was convinced, to do what we could to reduce climate change as much as possible. Cleaning our rivers. Cutting carbon dioxide. Finding new ways to protect the wetlands.
Those were all beneficial on their own terms, whether or not someone accepted the science of climate change or cared to heed its warnings. It seemed to me we should be doing all those things anyway.

I didn't only read about climate change and discuss it with my friends. I led by example. In April I ordered an energy audit at the Governor's Mansion and outfitted the place with high-efficiency lightbulbs and a
Heliocol solar heater for the outdoor swimming pool. I also got a new car: an ethanol-fueled Chevy Tahoe. There was only one ethanol station in Tallahassee, but the effort was worth it, I thought.

BP oil spill made me oppose offshore oil drilling

The 2010 BP oil spill was looking more severe by the day. I flew over the Gulf in a huge Florida National Guard C-144 aircraft so I could get a wide-angle view of what was already an 80-by-42-mile dark blob on the Gulf. The spill had already made me
rethink my openness to offshore oil drilling for Florida, I said. How could it not?

As soon as I returned to the Capitol, I called the Florida National Guard. "Do whatever you can to keep that oil spill from coming up on the beaches of the Panhandle."

Source: The Party's Over, by Charlie Crist, p.237-238
, Feb 4, 2014

Instituted state cap-and-trade by Executive Order

The governor had issued a series of executive orders instituting global warming cap-and-trade regulations, which would become law unless the legislature overrode them. We had the difficult task of coming up with a bill the governor would sign that would
override his executive orders. We found a solution. We passed a bill that instructed Florida's Department of Environmental Protection to create an outline of cap-and-trade plan for the state. However, the plan couldn't take effect unless the legislature
approved it. The governor signed it because he could claim he got a signature initiative passed by the legislature. The legislature passed it because we knew we could stop it later, no matter what the governor did.

When we ran against each other a
couple of years later, in an effort to convince Republican voters he was the more conservative candidate, Crist falsely claimed I had supported cap and trade. But I didn't support cap and trade.

Open to cap-and-trade plan for carbon emissions

Crist's reputation as a moderate flows in part from his willingness to break from his party on offshore drilling (which he opposed, until
2008) and his openness to notions like a "cap and trade" plan for the carbon emissions that contribute to global warming.

Source: New York Times on 2010 Florida Senate debate
, Jan 10, 2010

$200M package for solar, wind, & biofuel from citrus

What Florida has done for biotech, it can also do for clean tech. Thatís why Iím recommending a $200 million economic development package for solar, wind and other renewable energy, and to promote biofuels in Florida and encourage alternative fuels such
as ethanol. We have the opportunity to enhance the use of this cleaner fuel, while also providing a broader market for sugar cane and citrus waste. [We have] explored non-food sources of ethanol production in Farm to Fuel efforts.

Source: 2008 State of the State Address to Florida legislature
, Mar 4, 2008

Propose almost $70 million on alternative energy development

I have proposed almost 70 million dollars in my budget to foster the development and use of alternative energy sources and fuels in our state, including ethanol and biodiesel fuels for our cars and solar power for our homes. With these measured
steps, we can begin to achieve three important goals: addressing global climate change, promoting Florida agriculture, and weaning our country from reliance on foreign oil.

The Christian Coalition voter guide [is] one of the most powerful tools Christians have ever had to impact our society during elections. This simple tool has helped educate tens of millions of citizens across this nation as to where candidates for public office stand on key faith and family issues.

The CC survey summarizes candidate stances on the following topic: "Tax credits for investment in renewable sources of energy, (such as wind, solar & biomass)"